The Long and Winding Road
by Cloud1239999
Summary: Abandoned after the Nekoken Ranma continued his fathers planned training trip. Now finished Ranma returns to Japan to have to find out where his father is. This starts in a shaman king setting but will move to Nerima and eventually beyond.
1. Prologue I know it's not original

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The Long and Winding Road

Book 1: The Truth Behind the Neko-Ken

Prologue: The Wanderer

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"Speech"

'Thoughts'

Song (this one will only be used occasional wherever I believe I may be able to fit them in well.)

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Disclaimer: All the characters and music used in this story do not belong to me. They are the property of their respective owners and I am only borrowing them for a short while. In the future more characters will be introduced some who will be my own creation while others will belong to their respective creators.

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All seemed at peace. The streets of Izumo were silent since the stormy weather convinced most people to stay inside. There was one thing however that kept breaking the silence.

"Damn it." She screamed to herself for the twentieth time in the last half hour. "First day back in Japan and I've already found myself soaking wet." She took a deep breath to calm herself down. 'Alright, don't panic now. If I don't want to get sick like last time then I have to find a place to get out of the rain.' She looked up and down the street and didn't see anything she could use as cover from the weather.

'Why did he have to abandon me? I learn a technique and suddenly he's afraid of me.' She began to cry looking up at the sky. 'My father is a bastard. He just used and abused me anyways.' The girl continued down the street seeing a place where she might be able to find some cover. 'I hope that there's someone there.'

She covered the one hundred meter distance between her and the gate down the road in about six seconds. When she got there she began to ring the buzzer that was next to the gate. She only had a few seconds to wait until the gate opened.

There stood an older man who had to look up at her. "May I help you ma'am?" the girl twitched. As she was about to answer she was interrupted. "Oops, I apologize for my mistake ma'am. I should've invited you in first. You look like you're freezing." He stepped off to the side and granted her entry.

"I thank you sir." She said as she took off her soaked shoes and put them off to the side. As she was getting up she noticed a boy no older then her standing in the doorway watching. "My name is Ranma. Sorry about this."

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End Prologue.

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A/N: Sorry for such a short prologue everyone. I already wrote the first two chapters before I wrote this and I was feeling that it was lacking a proper intro so I decided to do something like this. By the time you read this I'll probably be nearly finished the fourth chapter.

This story will be split up into books of various chapter lengths. The first book will be the only one with a short length, and will last approximately five or six chapters. I won't give up any details of what's to come in future chapters of this book.

Until the next chapter, I hope you guys keep an open eye and look forward to the story.


	2. Introductions

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The Long and Winding Road

Book 1: The Truth Behind the Neko-Ken

Chapter 1: Introductions.

(Not so Quick A/N: I was in a good mood tonight so I decided to also post the first chapter of the story as not to leave you all with a prologue that left out too much of the attention getters. I would also like to make a request for some proof readers/co-authors if any would like to help. If you're interested please e-mail me via the address in my author info on All the characters used so far in this story do not belong to me. They are the property of their respective owners and I am only borrowing them for a short while. In the future more characters will be introduced some who will be my own creation while others will belong to their respective creators.

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It was a rainy day in Izumo. At the Asakura estate, Yoh was sitting back and relaxing after a training session by the river. He rung out his coat. "Sheesh, having to train even on a rainy day. Doesn't grandpa know that I'll probably catch a cold from this?" Yoh sneezed. "Great there's the first sign."

At that time there was a ring from the buzzer at the front gate. "I wonder who that could be?" Yoh got up and walked to the front door where he saw his grandfather talking to a red headed female stranger. She introduced herself as Ranma, a ronin in search of her father. Yoh couldn't help but look as he saw what looked like a spirit in a cloud floating around her neck.

Yoh was shaken out of his stupor by her voice. "Are you okay? You look like you've seen a ghost." Yoh looked up at his grandpa to see him looking at him.

"Nah, it's nothing." Yoh took one more look at his grandpa before saying his pardons and leaving the room.

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After the boy left Ranma took on a relaxed posture and let out a sigh. "What's up with him, sir?" Ranma looked back to Mr. Asakura.

"That's my grandson. I don't know why he was looking at you weird ma'am, but I assure you that it couldn't of been much. He has a wild imagination." Yohmei answered.

"That's alright sir. Well I'm sorry to be blunt, but I was wondering if you had some space I could stay in for a few days? I just got back to Japan from China and am in the process of finding the location of my father who left me for dead during the training of an ancient martial arts style."

Yoh was standing in the doorway listening to the conversation. 'Maybe that has something to do with that cloud around her neck.' As Yoh said this, Amidamaru came out of his memorial tablet.

"I believe you might be correct sir. I've seen the results of the training for a technique that resulted in a cloud like that first hand, and I can tell you that the way she moves highly suggests that she has gone through the Neko-ken training."

"Neko-ken." Yoh echoed deep in thought.

Yoh was startled for the second time that night as Anna tapped him on the shoulder. "You know that it's not nice to spy on guests." Anna took a look around the corner and blinked. She came back and looked at Yoh. She looked around the corner again for a few more seconds. "What the heck, is that cloud around her neck?"

Yoh and Amidamaru quickly explained what had happened since their arrival and told her of their guess as to what the cloud was.

Anna looked up at Amidamaru. "So how did you come to know of this Neko-ken?"

Amidamaru gave her a serious look before replying. "What do you think killed me?"

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Flashback:

Amidamaru was on top of Memorial Hill where he was waiting for his friend Minosuke to return. He'd of killed one thousand men in order to keep his word. He looked up from where he was meditating when he heard the sound of two sets of feet approaching.

"So you have survived all those men, have you Amidamaru?" The emperor said while looking around at all of the dead bodies.

"I can't believe you'd ask me to kill my own friend. I'm sorry, but my promise to my friend is stronger than any pledge I had with you."

"That is too bad Amidamaru." The emperor spoke with venom in his voice. "You will die here and now for your foolishness. You will be the first victim of our newest kind of warrior. This is Kurasu our first volunteer to this training." The emperor pointed to the man with him who Amidamaru now recognized to be acting like a cat. "Now Kurasu! Kill Amidamaru!"

With this Kurasu looked straight at Amidamaru and let out an inhuman meow. "MRREOW." He twisted his head to the side and began sniffing the air as he began circling Amidamaru who now had his sword drawn and was in a stance, ready to attack.

Amidamaru took first charge, slashing his sword at Kurasu who simply weaved around the attack and with a swipe of his hand made three gouges down his back.

Amidamaru let out a scream that caused the emperor to laugh. "So the great Amidamaru screams in pain from the simple swipe of an unarmed opponent's hand. How pitiful can you get?" Amidamaru got up and took another swing with his sword at the person with feline grace. This time he ducked under the sword and pounced on Amidamaru before he could recover from his swing.

"Stop." The emperor commanded. Amidamaru laid there recovering the breath that was knocked out of his lungs by the pounce. Karasu simply sat on Amidamaru as it's master walked up and looked down at the pinned samurai. "You see Amidamaru; I was planning on having you killed after you returned from killing your so called friend who ran away. This experimentation of fighters like these has been going on since a month after you swore loyalty to me. I was able to foresee this and decided to press the experiment. Now because of your incompetence you will die here today." He backed away again. "Kurasu." The cat man got back on his hand and feet. "Come here."

Amidamaru was confused that he had the cat-like man get off of him. "Why?" He asked.

"Because I'm going to give you one chance to kill Kurasa and myself to end this so called tyranny and save your own life." As he was saying this Amidamaru was getting back up onto his feet breathing hard. "I've never had the privilege of seeing your famous Buda Giri. (please correct me if I'm wrong with the name there. A/N) I was told that with the technique you were able to kill many before they even reached you. Now I want to see how it will fend against my loyal warrior who uses the ancient art of the Neko-Ken."

Amidamaru looked deep into Kurasu's eyes and saw absolutely no signs of human intelligence in there. "What kind of a fighter would give his sanity away for strength? WHAT KIND OF MAN WOULD FORCE ANOTHER TO GIVE UP HIS SANITY FOR THE SAKE OF STRENGTH?" Amidamaru was enraged now. "I will use the technique that helped me slay one thousand men to kill this abomination and you along with it!"

The emperor just smirked to himself. "Yes Amidamaru. Use the Buda Giri and kill this man with no sanity. Kill the man who made him that way. Or die trying. Whenever you're ready go ahead, and die."

Amidamaru raised his sword into position. He wound up his sword and gave out a cry, "Buda Giri!" He swung his sword in an arc unleashing the wave of force towards the emperor and Kurasu.

The emperor smiled. "Kurasu." At the command the cat quickly lifted its arm and took a swipe through the air that caused three waves to travel towards Amidamaru. Amidamaru watched in horror as his Buda Giri was cut by Kurasu's attack and continued forward to go through Amidamaru.

After it was over the attacks finished the emperor simply turned around and walked from the battle field with Kurasu, and we watch as Amidamaru's body falls into four pieces that slide to the ground.

End Flashback

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"That man, Kurasu. He definitely wasn't acting like a man would. It seemed that he was possessed, and that in being so he gained great strength. "

Both Yoh and Anna were staring at Amidamaru. They couldn't believe what they just heard.

"Well the behavior you just described definitely sounds like what I've been told I act like when I'm in the Neko-Ken." They were all shocked to see the red head standing in the door way looking straight at Amidamaru. "So, you had a run in with someone in the Neko-Ken. I know better then you do what this Kurasu would have had to go through in order to do that. Because of the training I can't ever be around a cat without going crazy."

Yohmei walked into the room. "So the Neko-Ken is triggered when you are consumed in fear and there is a cat around?" It wasn't as much of a question as a statement.

"Yes." Ranma confirmed.

"Then why don't you stay here for a little while young lady. There are some people around here that I'm sure could help you with your problem."

"That would be great." Ranma stated.

"Then how about you show him to one of the guest rooms Anna? We'll talk more over dinner when it's ready." At Yohmei's inquiry Anna took Ranma around the corner and down the hallway.

After Ranma and Anna disappeared around the corner Ranma asked the question that had been bothering him. "Was that a spirit I saw around his neck grandpa?"

"Yes," Yohmei answered. "I do believe that was a spirit." He looked where Ranma went for a few more seconds. "But I don't think that's just any normal spirit."

"Is it a nature spirit?" Yoh suggested.

"No, nature spirits can't hide their identities to the point that one did. I don't think that even the higher spirits are able to do that." Yoh looked over at his grandfather with surprise written clearly on his face.

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Ranma was following Anna down the hallway. Ranma fidgeted for a few seconds before he managed to muster the guts to ask his question. "Excuse me ma'am?"

Anna stopped and turned to Ranma. "Yes?"

Ranma fidgeted for a few more seconds. "Just to be sure, that samurai back there was a ghost wasn't it?"

"Yes, it was." She answered. "I have to say that you surprised all of us when you started talking to him. His name is Amidamaru and he's been dead for five hundred years."

Ranma put her hand behind her head and grinned sheepishly. "He certainly has an aura of strength about him doesn't he?" Anna quirked an eyebrow as she stared at the girl before her. "I must say though that his aura isn't as strong or as at peace as Yoh's though. He seems like a great guy even though he was a bit rude when he saw me staring at my neck and all."

Anna took a look at the cloud around Ranma's neck for a brief second before looking back up to Ranma's face. "Did you know that you have what looks like a spirit around your neck?"

Ranma looked at Anna for a second before responding. "What are you talking about?" Anna's eyebrow quirked further up if that was possible. "I'm sure that if I had something around my neck I would've noticed by now."

Anna and Ranma stared at each other for a few seconds. Anna was the first to break the silence. "Have you looked in a mirror?"

"No." Was Ranma's quick reaction. "I've been on the road all of my life. A mirror has been a rare thing for me to even see one, never mind use one."

Anna gave another look and then turned back around. "How about we get you to your room so that we can get back in time for dinner Ranma? Yoh's mother is cooking tonight so I don't think it'd be something we'd want to miss."

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After another ten minutes of walking Anna stopped in front of a door and opened it while standing off to the side. "Well this is your room. How about you set your things in here, I'm going to head back to the living area now. I guess I'll see you there once you're finished getting comfortable." With that Anna took off down the hallway at a fast walk.

As soon as Anna rounded the corner in the hallway Ranma chuckled to herself. 'I think I'm going to have some fun.' With that thought Ranma tossed her bag into the room and closed the door after it. 'I'll unpack some stuff later.' Ranma went over to the window and opened it. The first thing she noticed was that it finally stopped raining (much to Ranma's relief.). Ranma climbed out the window and landed on the ground.

On the other side of the yard Ryo was taking a walk around the estate admiring its size like he did each day after his training. "No matter how many times I look, it still won't sink in the fame that Yoh's family once had." He said aloud to no one in particular.

He was taken from his thoughts by the sound of a window opening about twenty meters ahead of him. He watched as a young red headed girl climbed out the window and jumped to the ground. Tokagero came out of his memorial tablet and took a look at the situation. He saw the red headed girl, and he saw the look on his still master's face. 'Not again.' He thought to himself. He looked again at the girl to see her pull a jump that would've left any normal person amazed. This time he was a part of the normal populace. He was shocked stupid by the red head's effortless jump up onto the roof, where she began running along its edge.

Tokagero shook his head and looked again at the girl running along the roof towards the main entrance. "Jeeze, not even Yoh could manage that." He continued watching her run for a bit at an incredible speed. "Maybe we need to go see a psychiatrist."

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End Chapter 1

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Well there's the first chapter of this story. As of right now I have the story plotted. The planned story will be split into ten storylines (which will be referred to as books) and one conclusion chapter. For now the fanfic is only a Ranma: one half and Shaman King Crossover but will soon have characters and/or scenarios introduced from several other manga/anime series. They will be introduced at their appropriate times and will not be known until then (unless I make a cameo appearance for them.) I will start work on the next chapter immediately.

Also, I am aware that I apparently suck at coming up with titles. I'd ask you guys to make a few suggestions but I know that it will be over 50 chapters before this story reaches a point where a definite title that would make sense for the story. So since this series will likely last over 200 chapters I will keep the name as "The Long and Winding Road." For now. (Though that is subject for a change if I hear a title I like better. 'Hint, hint')

As an extra I will be posting the new sypnosis with the completion of the first book. It will also change each time a new book starts.

Written by: Cloud1239999


	3. Friends

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The Long and Winding Road.

Book 1: The Truth Behind the Neko-Ken

Chapter 2: Friends.

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Disclaimer: All the characters used so far in this story do not belong to me. They are the property of their respective owners and I am only borrowing them for a short while (okay, so the short while is a lie since I don't know how long it'll take me to finish my planned storylines). In the future more characters will be introduced some who will be my own creation while others will belong to their respective creators.

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"Hehe, I can't wait to see the look on her face when she sees that I beat her to the living area," Thought Ranma as she jumped down from the roof. Ranma casually slid open the front door and quickly stepped around the corner into the living area where she saw Yoh on a beanie watching TV.

Yoh turned to see that she just walked in and waved. "Hey, would you like to watch some TV?" Ranma looked at the screen seeing that there was a martial arts tournament being shown on the screen. She promptly took a seat on the floor and while watching the screen went upside down onto her head into the lotus position. Yoh looked curiously at what was to him an unusual way to sit. "Isn't that uncomfortable?" Yoh asked.

Ranma did a handstand and turned so she was facing Yoh before going back onto her head. "No, I actually find it quite comfortable." She did another handstand and turned back towards the TV before once again balancing on her head and elbows.

Yoh turned back to the screen and continued watching it. After a few minutes he stood up and took another look at Ranma seeing that she seemed unimpressed by something. Yoh shook his head and continued to the kitchen to get a glass of water.

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Yoh walked into the kitchen seeing his mother cooking the meal. He walked over to the cabinet and grabbed a glass before pouring himself a glass of water.

Anna walked into the kitchen at this time and began chopping some vegetables that were on the counter. She continued working on the veggies until Yoh's mother interrupted her. "So how's our guest Anna?" She inquired with a smile on her face.

"She seemed pretty calm if I must say so. She kind of reminded me of Yoh with the attitude she seemed to show on the way there. She should be here in a few minutes she was unpacking a few things when I left from opposite side of the estate."

Yoh put down his glass. "Did you end up dawdling or something Anna?" He asked.

"No, I came straight here." She said giving him a questioning look.

"Well, so you know, she's been in the living room for the last eight minutes watching a martial arts tournament on TV with me." He said pointing his thumb over his head towards the living room.

Anna face-faulted.

"That can't be." She said giving Yoh a skeptic look while she got up. "I only left her there about ten minutes ago." Yoh closed his eyes and shrugged his shoulders.

"If you don't believe me then why don't you go take a look for yourself?" Anna and his mother both walked to the edge of the kitchen and looked into the living area where they did see Ranma still watching TV in the lotus position. Yoh listened as Anna's jaw hit the ground.

This caught Ranma's attention and she did the same handstand turning maneuver turning to face Anna and Yoh's mother. "Hi," Was all Ranma said before readjusting herself to face the TV again wearing the same bored look.

Inside Ranma was laughing her head off at the look he saw on Anna's face. He knew she'd be surprised but he never thought that in his life he would literally see someone's jaw hit the ground while they were standing upright.

In a manner of seconds things continued as they were before: Ranma continued watching TV, Yoh came out of the kitchen and returned to his bean chair to continue watching, and Yoh's mother went back into the kitchen to continue cooking. While everyone did this, Anna just continued staring in shock at Ranma.

Yohmei walked into the living room and looked at Yoh and Ranma watching TV. 'I believe that is the Lotus position that the young girl is sitting in. She must be a martial artist.' He looked at her for a few seconds more before deciding to offer their guest a drink. "Excuse me Ranma?" He inquired. Ranma did his handstand turn until she was facing him.

"Yes, Mr. Asakura?" She answered while lowering herself back into the full lotus position.

"I was on my way to the kitchen and wanted to know if you'd like a glass of water or something?"

"Yes please sir. That would be nice." Yohmei watched as Ranma did another handstand turning back to the TV. He chuckled to himself.

When he turned towards the kitchen he noticed Anna frozen in the same look of shock she had been in for the last five minutes. He walked up to her and snapped his fingers in front of her face. She didn't budge. He chuckled to himself again. "That's weird; she has never been shaken to this point. Yohmei followed the path her eyes seemed to follow and realized that she was staring at Ranma again. Once he realized this he just took one more look at her then continued his trek into the kitchen where he got Ranma and himself glasses of water and returned to the living room where he sat down in a bean chair next to Ranma handing her one of the two glasses.

Yohmei watched with a little surprise as Ranma, in a single fluid motion, returned to a cross legged seating position on the ground without spilling a single drop of water from the glass. This time instead of chuckling he burst out into a hardy laugh which earned him looks from Yoh and Ranma. "That's it." He said continuing to laugh. "Now I definitely know that you are a martial artist of incredible skill." He said this pointing his finger at Ranma. "Everything from the way you move to the way you were watching TV in the Lotus position. I figured you were one when I first saw you in that position, but the two big tips that convinced me were how you seemed somehow bored watching the competitors and how easily you returned to this cross-legged position without spilling the water you're holding right now." Ranma gave Yohmei a surprised look before giving her own little laugh.

"Quite frankly, I'm surprised that someone was able to pick me out as more then a normal martial artist so soon." She said now pointing her index finger at Yohmei. Ranma looked over her shoulder and saw that Anna was still in her frozen state. He turned his finger to her. "Shouldn't someone wake her? She seems to have fainted when she saw me here." Yohmei gave another hearty laugh, and Yoh looked back at Anna and then watched his grandfather and the girl.

"Ranma and I were watching TV for about eight minutes before Anna got back from showing Ranma her room. She said that she'd of left Ranma there at her room ten minutes before she got to the kitchen. This is what happened," He pointed his thumb at Anna. "when she saw Ranma here in that upside down position." Yoh turned back to the TV to see someone get knocked out by a kick to the head. He winced. "That had to hurt."

Ranma just shrugged her shoulders. "I could've dodged that kick any time." Yohmei just chuckled to himself as he turned to watch the fights.

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During a commercial break Ranma decided to go outside for some fresh air. Ranma closed her eyes and took a deep breath expanding her senses as she did so to sense all of the people on the estate. She sensed Ryo walking around the yard on the other side of the building she was standing outside of, back in the kitchen and living quarters Ranma was able to sense Anna, Yoh, his mother, and Yohmei all sitting there watching TV. There was an unfamiliar aura in the area though. It held a feeling of power, nearly as powerful as Yoh's though not quite equal. This person had a feel to their aura that said that they'd of led a hard life to this point. Ranma walked back inside for a moment and let everyone know that he'd be stepping out for a bit. Yoh decided that he wanted to walk around for a bit and offered to go with Ranma. Ranma turned him down at first, but the way Yoh talked he was able to convince Ranma to let him tag along.

Ranma and Yoh headed outside where to Yoh's surprise Ranma didn't head out of the front gate and instead started walking across the estate towards the west wall. (A/N: I'm assuming that the main gate is on the south wall.) Yoh followed after a second. "What're you going over here for Ranma? The only exit is at the south gate."

Ranma leaned against the wall and put her index finger to her lips to silence Yoh and motioned for him to lean against the wall next to her. After a few seconds Yoh complied and he gave Ranma a questioning look. Ranma held up her hand and began counting off her fingers. 3, 2, 1.

Yoh listened as he heard a scurrying noise as someone was trying to climb the wall behind them. Yoh grinned as he pointed to the wall and Ranma made another silencing gesture. They listened for a few more seconds before Ren jumped down from the top of the wall and landed in front of them with his back to them. Ranma turned to Yoh for a second with a big grin on her face and pointed to Ren who still had his back to them. Ranma watched as what looked like a ghost in a heavy set of armor appeared by Ren. Bason turned to Len and was about to say something when he noticed Yoh leaning against the wall with a red head girl right next to him.

"Excuse me Lord Ren?" Bason spoke for the first time.

"Not now Bason, I want to get the jump on Yoh this time."

"But, sir." The ghost pleaded.

"No buts Bason. We must get closer to the living quarters. That's where Yoh probably is being the slack that he is." Upon hearing this Ranma pointed at Ren again. Yoh put on a grin and nodded before starting to walk up behind Ren.

Ren was still walking towards the living quarters but Yoh was following only about five feet behind him with Ranma following a little behind him. Bason was floating by his master shooting looks over his shoulder at the two following his unaware master.

Ranma was thinking that this was hilarious. He couldn't believe that this Ren guy hadn't of seen his followers yet. 'We're wide in the open and he doesn't notice us following him.' He looked at the two again comparing what he sensed in their auras. 'Yep, this guy doesn't stand a chance against Yoh. Maybe I'll have a little fun with him later.'

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Finally reaching the living quarters on the estate Len snuck up to the window that looked into the living quarters. When he looked in he was surprised. "Maybe he went into the kitchen." Ren snuck over a few more windows with both Ranma and Yoh following three feet behind him wearing two of the silliest grins you could ever see. When he scanned the kitchen he was surprised to see that Yoh wasn't in there either. "Could he actually be training?"

"Um, sir?" Bason spoke again.

"Not now Bason, I must find Yoh."

"Sir, he's right behind us." At that Ren turned around to see Ranma and Yoh standing there looking like they were ready to laugh. When they saw his face they did just that. They burst into laughter falling on the ground and rolling around. "I tried to tell you before master, but they've been right behind us ever since we jumped the western wall." At that statement Ren's face turned red and he started shouting. Ranma and Yoh couldn't make it out though since they were still laughing so hard. Ranma sobered up though when he saw Ren pull out his pike and dash at them. Yoh also noticed Ren's charge but was surprised to see that it came to a complete stop. Yoh blinked before he noticed that there was a set of feet in Ren's face. It took a second more for Yoh to realize that Ranma was no longer behind him and that it was Ranma's feet that were in Ren's face. Ranma was in a tucked position balancing on his face. After another second Ranma used Ren as a springboard knocking him down into the ground as Ranma took to the air and landed back behind Yoh.

Over on the porch Yohmei watched as Ranma jumped off of Ren's face. He blinked a few times. "I didn't even see her move. One second standing about five meters away from the charging Ren and the next second her feet were in his face." He chuckled to himself. "I guess she wasn't kidding when she said she could've dodged that guys kick on the TV."

Yoh was still looking back and forth between Ranma and Ren. He was shocked at the incredible speed the girl displayed. He suddenly recovered and ran over to Ren rolling him over to see the shoe prints that were on his face accompanied by the bleeding nose that he had. "Ranma, could you promise me something?"

"Sure, I don't see why not." She replied.

"Please don't do that to my other friends when they arrive." Ranma face-faulted.

"He's your friend?" Ranma half shouted as she pulled herself off the ground.

Bason floated over to Ren's unconscious form. "Yes, they're friends. It's just that with the way he was raised he doesn't know how to properly be a friend. He usually ends up getting into arguments and fights with them but he's been happier since he became friends with Yoh and the others."

Yoh nodded in agreement to Bason's summary. "He's right; I was naturally a loaner when I was younger. All of the children at school called me devil boy and shunned me. About six months ago I finally made my first friend and I am happy with how things are going. I'm hoping that while you're staying here with the family that we'll be able to become friends too." Yoh extended his hand towards Ranma and smiled.

Ranma didn't know what to say. She had never of had any friends for that long. His father had always taken her away from them before he got a chance to actually make any true friends, always referring to friends as a martial artist's weakness. At that time Ranma suddenly realized that his father wasn't around. He'd of left Ranma for dead when he went crazy during the Neko-Ken training. A few tears came to Ranma's eyes as she realized that for the first time in her life it was possible for her to make some real friends. 'Martial artists don't cry' she told herself before wiping away the tears on her face.

Yoh was getting worried that Ranma wasn't taking the offered hand. He was wondering if he'd of said something wrong and got really worried when he noticed the tears in the girls eyes. He watched for a few more seconds. He heard her mutter something about Martial Artists never crying as she began wiping the tears from her eyes. After a few more seconds she took the offered hand and shook it. "Friends." She said.

Yoh grinned. "Good. Now friend, could you please help me get my other friend here into the house."

Back on the porch Yohmei wiped a tear from his eye as he watched the end of the exchange between the two. 'It's great that they're becoming friends.' He gained a serious look. 'I wonder why she began to cry though when Yoh made the offer.'

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Within the next hour Yoh's other friends arrived. Horohoro and Perka arrived and were introduced to Ranma followed shortly after by Manta. When all were present they sat around the knee table for the meal.

Everyone was enjoying the meal, except for two individuals who were deep in thought over separate actions performed by a certain pig-tailed red head. Yohmei chuckled to himself watching Anna and Ren, who still had the shoe prints on his face. 'I don't blame those two for being disturbed.' He looks over to Ranma who was eating at a quick pace. 'This child is beyond any of them. She's quick, strong, and displays a great amount of skill in everything down to the way she moves.' He took up a serious look. 'Even though she does move in that manner, it seems that she's still getting used to her body. I wonder about that though. How could she not be used to her body, if she has been living with it all of her life?'

Ranma was looking around the table enjoying being around so many happy people. This was something that she never remembered doing before. She looked around at all of the faces noticing the cold stares coming from Anna and Ren. To him Anna's stare was more prominent though, and she decided to address her first. "May I ask you a question Anna?"

She quirked her eyebrow before replying, "You can ask, but I can't guarantee that I'll answer." Yohmei shook his head at her reaction.

"What did I do to get this cold attitude from you?"

"You should very well know. You did the impossible and won't explain how you did it."

"You could've just asked. Yoh and Mr Asakura here know how." Ranma replied with her eyes closed and resting her elbow on the table.

If she had her eyes open, she would've seen the half full cup of tea flying at her. When it collided dumping all of its contents on Ranma's head everyone at the table gasped. Where there was a young red headed girl sitting was now a black haired man who was about four inches taller. He effortlessly caught the tea cup that ran into his head and was looking around the table. He sighed to himself.

"Now this is crappy."

Silence reigned supreme for the next several seconds. During this time if someone looked outside the window behind Ranma they would've noticed a few tumbleweeds rolling by, though that would cause one to wonder what the hell a group of tumbleweeds were doing in Japan.

Yohmei was the first to recover who began laughing which brought everyone else out of their shocked states. Ranma was sitting there with his eyes closed taking a few slow breaths. Everyone except Yoh and Yohmei started asking questions at the same time. Upon seeing Ranma's annoyed expression Yohmei tapped his cane on the table to silence all of the questioning people.

"I am sure that there is a good explanation for why there is now a man sitting at the table instead of a girl but I'm sure that judging by his expression he isn't ready to answer any questions." He looked around at everyone. They were all staring at him except Yoh and Ranma who had their eyes closed and were picking at their food. "I'll have a talk with him later, but until then I'm sure he'd prefer it if you all didn't interrupt his meal." With that statement everyone sobered up and resumed their meal while shooting the occasional questioning look at Ranma.

Once finished his meal Ranma stood and began walking for the shogi door that led out to the yard. Once he was outside Yoh stood and also headed for that direction.

"Yoh," It was Yohmei that stopped him. "I don't want you to go out there right now. I'm sure that our guest would appreciate the time to calm down after dealing with everyone else here." With that statement he swept a glare across all of the people who were still sitting down. Yoh turned to Yohmei and gave a smile.

"I know that he needs time to recover. I'm just going to go and be the friend I promised him I would be." With that said Yoh turned and walked through the shogi doors and closed them behind him.

Yohmei closed his eyes and smiled to himself. 'You really are growing up Yoh.'

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Once Ranma was outside he took a quick look around spotting a koi pond with a few large rocks around it. He smiled to himself and walked over to the pond then looked into it. He watched his reflection for a few seconds before he gave a very shallow bow to it. Once that was done he turned around and took a few steps away from it.

Yoh was sitting down leaning against the outer wall of the house. He watched as Ranma bowed to the koi pond and took a few steps back. Yoh was confused as to what Ranma was doing. He continued pondering it until Ranma threw a punch. Ranma flowed from the punch into a side kick, after that he went into a complicated dance of punches and kicks that left Yoh speechless. He heard the shogi door open beside him and watched as his grandpa stepped out and quietly sat down beside Yoh. They were able to hear the chatter of the others inside but their minds were not listening to them. Yohmei was just as caught up in Ranma's intricate dance. They continued watching for a few more minutes until Ranma came to a halt. Ranma held his stance for a few seconds before leaving his pose and bowing back towards the Koi pond.

When Ranma turned around he noticed the two male Asakura's sitting on the porch. They clapped their hands as Ranma started towards them.

"That was a splendid show." Yohmei was the first to speak while Yoh nodded his head in agreement. "I apologize for the people inside. I'm sure that no one meant to offend you with their stares and questions."

Yoh stood up and walked over to Ranma. He put his hands on Ranma's shoulder. "That was Jusenkyo wasn't it?" To say that Ranma was surprised by the question would've been an understatement.

"How'd you know about…"

"Jusenkyo?" Yohmei interrupted him. "As you've probably figured out we are a family of Shaman's and being so, we have a vast knowledge of things magical in nature."

"Shamans?" Ranma had a questioning look. "I've never even heard of em." With that statement both Yoh and Yohmei face-faulted.

Yoh and Yohmei started laughing as they resumed their sitting positions. When they noticed Ranma's annoyed look they sobered up. "Sorry Ranma." Yohmei was the one who said this. "It's just that we find it funny that you are able to see spirits and know nothing of the type of people that are able to." Ranma looked deep in thought for a few seconds before a smirk broke out on his face and he laughed himself for a few seconds.

"I believe I see where you are coming from." Ranma said while letting out his last few chuckles. "I'm just not good at dealing with people." Ranma sighed. "You'd expect that if you knew how my life has been." Ranma said this while lowering his head so that his banes covered his eyes.

Silence reigned supreme for the next few seconds while Yoh and Yohmei exchanged worried looks. Yoh stood up and walked over to Ranma where he stood beside his new friend. When he was about to put his hand on Ranma's shoulder he suddenly found his wrist held by a firm hand. When he looked down at Ranma he noticed that Ranma just tensed before letting go of Yoh's wrist and sat down on the ground.

"I'm sorry. My stupid father is the one responsible for the way I grew up and act around others. I just find myself taking any form of physical contact as a threat of harm."

To say that Yoh and Yohmei were shocked would have been an understatement. They couldn't believe that anyone could've been raised in a way that caused their very base reactions to something like that as a threat.

"Would you like to talk about it, Ranma?" Yohmei asked with a smile on his face that showed volumes to Ranma.

"I'm also here if you'd like." Ranma looked up at Yoh who had a similar smile to Yohmei's but Yoh's was much brighter.

'Are these two for real?' Ranma asked himself as he looked back and forth between the two faces that seemed to warrant a feeling of calm and salvation.

'These two are the first people who have ever shown such kindness to me after they knew about my curse.' Ranma began to look thoughtful for a second.

'They never called me a freak.'

'They didn't run in fear.'

'Hell, they even came out here to try and comfort me.'

…

After a few seconds Ranma's head hung back low which caused them to become worried further.

'I trust them.' With that thought a smile much like theirs showed up on Ranma's face. He nodded to the two before replying. "That would be nice."

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End Chapter 2

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Before I say anything else I just want to mention that in this chapter I had Ranma give a shallow bow to his reflection in the Koi pond. Before questions are asked in reviews I want to say that the way Ranma reacts to reflections of himself will show how he feels about himself at that point in time. The depth of his bow will be used as a way of showing how much respect he has for himself at the time. The deeper the bow Ranma does will be a symbol of greater respect.

All right now for a quick look of the start of the next chapter so that no one is confused. It will be one week after the end of this chapter. Ranma will have told his past to Yoh and Yohmei. (I'm doing this so I don't bore you all with yet another recap of what happened in Ranma's ten year training trip with his father.) Just so you know it is the whole training trip, but in this story Genma abandoned Ranma for dead after Ranma was put through the neko-ken training. Ranma ends up following the planned training trip through winding up getting himself cursed still after tripping into the Spring of Drowned Girl himself. After that Ranma learns that his father is more than likely to have headed back to Japan so he chose to head that way too not knowing where else to go. The next chapter will be the starting point of when the neko-ken is really brought into play.

As for how my posting is going to work I will not be posting a next chapter until the one after is done. (for those of you who just got confused, I'll be posting chapter 3 when I'm finished 4, posting 4 when I'm finished 5, etc.) This way it'll be easier for me to make changes to a previous chapter if necessary in order to make something in a chapter work. However, once a book is finished it'll stay unedited until I decide to do a revision if I decide to do one. Until next time, I hope you all enjoy and please rate and review. (Helpful criticism welcome. Just please don't be too offensive.)

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Written by: Cloud1239999


	4. A new problem arises Yeah i know, bad t...

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The Long and Winding Road.

Book 1: The Truth Behind the Neko-Ken

Chapter 3: A new problem arises. Ranma goes cat.

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Disclaimer: All the characters used so far in this story do not belong to me. They are the property of their respective owners and I am only borrowing them for a short while (okay, so the short while is a lie since I don't know how long it'll take me to finish my planned storyline). In the future more characters will be introduced some who will be my own creation while others will belong to their respective creators.

(A/N: I apologize for taking so long with this chapter. I was having trouble writing chapter four and ended going back to this one a few times to make small changes so that ideas in the fourth chapter will work. Other then that I credit the delay of this chapter with me getting hooked onto pokemon emerald for a bit and now that I'm able to step away from it to work on this story, the first book should be completed in the next little while. I'm sorry for any inconvenience, and I hope you continue to enjoy the story.)

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Yohmei was sitting back against the wall on his porch once again watching Ranma run through another kata. The skill displayed by the currently male Ranma was the farthest thing from his mind. 'It has been a week since he came here.' He lit his pipe and took a puff. 'I'm worried about him though. Not only has he had a tough life but he seems to have a spirit that is hanging around his neck that I can't seem to identify.' He blew out the smoke with that thought. 'I wonder if I should try to do a scribing on the spirit to make direct communication with it.' He watched Ranma finish the kata before turning and walking to the porch where Yohmei handed him a towel he used to wipe the sweat from his forehead.

"Domo arigato, elder Yohmei." Ranma dabbed some more sweat from his forehead as he sat down.

"You're welcome Ranma." He returned.

'For having a Father like this Saotome Genma I'm surprised that Ranma turned into such an honorable man.' He turned an eye to the boy who was now leaning back against the wall of the porch with his arms rested behind his head. Yohmei knew that there was something familiar about the boy. 'He shows such great skill and dedication to his art but when he isn't practicing there is something about him that seems to shine out that tugs at the back of my head reminding me of someone else.'

At that moment Yoh walked by heading past them towards another part of the estate giving a small greeting as he passed. Yohmei watched Yoh continue until he was around the corner before returning to his own thoughts. 'Maybe I'll do that spirit scribe next time Ranma falls asleep. I just hope that it isn't a malevolent spirit bent on some sort of revenge. He really is a one in a million boy.'

When he looked over to Ranma he noticed that Ranma's breathing changed in such a way that it suggested sleep. Yohmei got to his feet and stood there for a few seconds before Ranma. He looked at the mysterious cloud around Ranma's neck then turned and walked away, deciding that it'd be better to put it off until he had a word with the boy.

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Shortly after Yohmei's departure Ranma started to sweat. In his dream Genma was a giant standing over a child Ranma. They were both surrounded by shadows that Ranma was able to see the glowing orbs of the animal he'd of become so afraid of.

"Ranma, if you can't even handle this training then I have no reason to keep you around. Men do not show fear." Due to the fear Ranma went into a fetal position. "Look at you, you inconsiderate disgrace." He pointed directly at Ranma who just tried to tuck up into a tighter ball. "Why did my son have to be so weak?" With that Genma walked into the shadows where two sets of the bright yellow orbs gave way to let him through before going back to their previous positions.

Ranma knew that this wasn't a good thing. The last thing he remembered was a loud feral growl that emanated from the shadows before the light left his view.

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"YYYAAAAAAAHHHHHH!" Yoh was startled from the scream that split the air. It was like nothing he'd of ever heard. He began running to the source of the scream hoping that he'd be able to make it in time to help whoever was in trouble.

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Yohmei was at a full run. From experience he knew how to recognize a scream that came from the very depths of ones being. Idly he wondered if it had something to do with the spirit that hung on Ranma's neck.

"On no, what's the matter Ranma? " At hearing this yell he sped up.

"Hold still Ranma." Yohmei finally turned the corner to see Anna trying to hold back a thrashing Ranma. He kept running, but he idly knew what was about to happen.

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Yoh rounded the corner opposite the porch that Yohmei had just come up on and was startled to see the insane looking Ranma. He continued running towards Ranma until he heard a shout from Yohmei.

"Stay away from Ranma you two."

As soon as she heard him Anna leapt backwards away from Ranma just as he ended up taking what looked like a swipe with his hand that was aimed directly at Anna's chest.

As Anna landed she started staring at Ranma who was still thrashing around on the ground. She was broken out of her reverie though when she heard Yohmei yelling at her.

"Anna go and get as many people as you can. I have a feeling that we'll need everyone to help with Ranma."

"Yes sir." She took off running towards the living quarter where the telephone was. As she ran though she heard what sounded like a yowl.

Yohmei and Yoh watched as the cloud around Ranma's neck sunk into his skin and disappeared. Once it was finished that Ranma stopped thrashing and just lay still on the ground. Yoh went to approach Ranma but was stopped.

"Don't Yoh. I believe that he's just been possessed by that spirit. Considering that we don't know what it is, it isn't safe to approach him at this time. We must be patient and see what happens."

Ranma's eyes opened and he looked around. He saw two familiar people staring at him. He was able to sense the nervousness on them though. He shrugged it off though and yawned. He didn't know why he was tired and quite frankly he didn't really care either. He watched as the older man approached him with a curious eye. He heard the old man speak though he couldn't understand what was being said by the man. When the man put his hand on Ranma's shoulder he finally decided to ask a question.

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After Ranma went limp Yohmei became worried for Ranma. He started approaching but stopped when Ranma opened his eyes and started looking around. 'I hope that this spirit isn't going to attack. I don't think I could stand up to the power that Ranma has in his body. It would surely be a tragedy if Ranma's strength was to be used by a malevolent spirit.' Yohmei stopped his approach and watched Ranma as he looked around. He continued as Ranma yawned and decided that he might be able to get a little closer. As he did this he stared into Ranma's eyes as he stared back into his. When Yohmei was finally up to Ranma he was going to put his hand on Ranma's shoulder but was interrupted by a meow that came from Ranma.

'A cat spirit?' Yohmei quirked an eyebrow at that thought. 'That cloud around his neck has been the spirit of a cat.' He looked back in his memory to what Ranma had told him about his training trip and came to a realization as he remembered the last form of training Ranma ended up taking before his father left him.

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Yoh watched his grandfather as he approached Ranma. He wanted nothing more then to run up to Ranma but was held back by Yohmei's command and the memory of seeing Ranma take a swing at Anna.

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Ranma was having what seemed to him to be a nightmare. In it there was a giant c-c-animal with grey fur, black stripes and yellow eyes standing before him that was staring at him in such a way that Ranma knew it was staring into his very soul. He couldn't bring himself to move away from it. He wanted nothing more then to run for his life. Ranma's mind kept telling him that he was going to die if he stayed there with the giant feline but there was also something in its eyes that told Ranma that no harm was going to come to him. He was truly caught up in a conflict of will and common sense.

Ranma stayed unmoving for a few minutes. He continued to stare into the giant c-c-creatures eyes. He was slowly calming down until the cat laid down with it's head on it's paw. He blinked at that then watched as it rolled onto it's back and resumed staring at him from it's upside down position.

"Could you please scratch my belly for me?"

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From this hilltop one would be able to see many things. Mt. Fuji, some forests, and what is currently more important the highway, where a scream could be heard. "What the fcking hell do you think you're doing?" Ren for the first time in his life was riding in the passenger car of Ryo's motorcycle which was currently flying down the highway at excess speeds of over eighty five miles per hour.

Ryo was wearing a huge grin as he enjoyed the panic that was evident in Ren's voice. "You heard the panic in Lady Anna's voice didn't you Ren? (A/N sorry, I don't know the pet names/insults they use when referring to each other.) She's normally never fazed by anything. This is the first time I've heard actual panic in her voice."

Ren blinked as he thought about it. "Oh fine, go ahead and continue driving like a maniac." At that Ryo's grin grew bigger and Ren went back into panic as the bike picked up speed.

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Anna hung up the phone and rested her face in her hand while. 'Why were those two the only ones I was able to get a hold of? If I know them, they'll find some way to screw this up.' She looked out the window to see Yohmei ducked down by Ranma with his hand on the younger boys shoulder. She let out a sigh. 'Maybe I didn't need to call those two. It seems that Yohmei has the situation under control now.' She smiled to herself as she watched Ranma get up into a position that seemed very much to her like an animals. She watched Ranma walk around on his hand and feet rubbing himself against Yohmei's legs. "What the… Isn't that weird." She shrugged her shoulders and went to go back outside.

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Ren was shaking. His life was passing before his eyes and he didn't like it. Ryo's panicked riding was an experience like death itself.

Ryo poked Ren getting no response. He shook his head before taking his boken and bopping Ren on his head.

"Hey, what'd ya do that for?" Ren shouted as he came out of his shocked reverie. This came so suddenly that it shocked Ryo into falling off of his motorcycle. He was back on his feet as suddenly as he fell off.

"What the hell did you think I was doing? You seemed so out of it that gentle means wouldn't wake you up. Besides," He gestured behind him. "we're here."

Ren looked to where Ryo gestured and noticed the sign stating that they were indeed at the Asakura estate.

"Oh." Was all he was able to say.

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Yoh and Yohmei were now sitting on the porch petting the feline behaving Ranma that was sitting between them.

"This has got to be the most interesting possession I have ever seen." Yoh commented. Yohmei nodded his head in agreement.

"A cat spirit who is able to possess a human is quite unusual. I've never seen anything like it. It seems to have calmed down now so I don't believe anyone will get hurt." As soon as this was said Ranma went back onto his standing cat position and arched his back towards the front gate. He then began to hiss. "I hope this doesn't mean what I think it means."

Ranma ran off the porch and jumped to the roof, then proceeded to run for the front gate across the roof. Yoh and Yohmei exchanged one look before nodding and chasing after Ranma knowing what they had to do.

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Ren opened the gate with his pike and peeked to either side of the gate expecting something to jump out at him. He was being cautious since he had a feeling of impending pain. That was about the time that Ryo chose to run through the gate incidentally running Ren over. As Ryo disappeared inside Ren dusted himself off.

'Ok, that did hurt but I still have that feeling that I'm about to be in a lot more pain.'

It was at that point that he heard yelling from above him on the roof.

What Ren looked up to see, he would never forget for the rest of his life.

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Yoh and Yohmei were running as fast as they could. Yoh was running on the roof while Yohmei was running on the ground.

"I can't keep up with him grandpa. He's just too fast." Yoh gasped out as he slowly watched Ranma pulling ahead of him.

"Don't give up grandson. We're nearly at the front gate now. That is where Ranma was heading anyways. Try yelling to him again. You're closer then me so you should be more likely to be heard."

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Ranma couldn't believe it. To his mind there were several things wrong that only helped to confuse him.

A: The giant feline wasn't trying to eat him.

B: He wasn't running scared.

And C: It was lying on its back asking him for a belly rub.

Ranma was able to think about points A and B with relative calm but point C obviously hadn't of sunk in yet.

"What the hell!" Ranma yelled.

The cat somehow managed to quirk its eyebrow.

"Don't tell me that you've never seen a cat (Ranma flinched) talk before?" At that point Ranma fainted. "Well there goes my tummy rub."

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End Chapter 3

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Ooh, this has gotten interesting. Hehehe. Ranma has now gone cat and it seems that it wants a little Ren on its menu. Inside of Ranma's mind he is also dealing with the cat spirit and promptly fainted when the cat spirit started talking to him. (I know that it doesn't make sense since he shouldn't be able to faint in his own mindscape, but hey, play along with this writers illusions of sanity.) ((Hehehe))

At the moment I don't have much else to say so if you have questions put them on the reviews and I will do my best to answer them on the review board. Just please keep in mind that I'm a working man with a busy life so this isn't going to be one of those stories that's updated every two or three days and more then likely to be updated at random times. Towards the beginning I'm updating fairly quickly but I'm starting to approach a bit of writers block. So please be patient.

Calks shotgun

Now please excuse me. I have a bit of block hunting to do.

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Written by: Cloud12399

P.S. By the time you read this I should be finished the fourth chapter.


	5. When cats and ronins mix

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The Long and Winding Road.

Book 1: The Truth Behind the Neko-Ken

Chapter 4: What you get when you put a cat and a Ronin together

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Disclaimer: All the characters used so far in this story do not belong to me. They are the property of their respective owners and I am only borrowing them for a short while (okay, so the short while is a lie since I don't know how long it'll take me to finish my planned storyline). In the future more characters will be introduced some who will be my own creation while others will belong to their respective creators.

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I apologize to all of my readers for taking so long with this chapter but I'm currently having a problem with writers block for the 5th chapter and was trying hard to work em out. I've decided to release this chapter slightly ahead of date to help quench the reviewers thirst. It's only the next chapter or 2 that I'll be having trouble with since it will focus a good part of the story to come in the second book.

(Takes on announcer style voice.) "Now we return you to you reading pleasures."

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When Ren looked up the sight that greeted him was an enraged Ranma descending on him from above.

"Move, Ren!" Yoh yelled as he descended from the roof right behind Ranma.

Ren stood stock still for a second more staring into the now yellow cat-like eyes that had murder in them. That second however was all it took for Ranma to descend on him. With a kick Ren was sent flying back out of the gates into the middle of the streets.

As Ren was sent flying backwards Yoh landed behind Ranma and went to make a grab. Ranma ducked the grab without turning around and with a vault kick to the abdomen, sent Yoh back onto the roof.

Yohmei ran around the corner just in time to watch his grandson get launched onto the roof. 'What have we gotten ourselves into?' He questioned himself as he started spreading his mana to the leaves around him, summoning the Shikigami that he used for his oversoul.

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Ranma awoke again still in his mind.

"What the hell is wrong with me?

He looked around seeing that the gray feline was still in front of him. "Why is it always me?"

"Because you were the one I chose to follow the path of the true Neko-ken."

"So you're saying that when my idiot father threw me in the pit full of cats I was chosen by you as someone worthy to inherit the Neko-ken?"

The cat nodded.

"Ok, now I'm just confused. What would've happened if I wasn't deemed worthy?" The giant cat chuckled.

"You would've been permanently taken over by a lesser cat spirit that obediently listened to the person who put you through the training." Ranma shuddered at the thought of becoming his fathers slave. "However, since you have been chosen you will not be fully human for much longer."

"What do you mean?"

"Our souls have already begun to merge Ranma. Your body is beginning to change its features as we are talking."

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'What the...' Yohmei thought to himself. 'Only a minute ago Ranma seemed to have murder in his eyes and yet now he's happily playing around with my Shikigami as if they were toys.' Yohmei had of started off with about thirty Shikigami trying to knock Ranma out and he was now on his third batch with his mana running low. This continued for another two minutes until Yoh jumped back into action.

Now welding a boken Yoh activated his oversoul and began attacking Ranma in haste trying to land a blow. He was failing miserably of course since Ranma was just weaving around the attacks.

'This is not going to end well.'

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Ren woke up feeling fire in his gut. "Damn, I feel like I was hit by a train."

"You're finally awake Master Ren." It was Bason who said this.

"What the hell happened Bason?"

"You were kicked in the gut by Ranma after he jumped off of the roof sir."

"Are you sure he kicked me? It felt more like he used a sludge hammer to hit me." He got up as he said this.

"Look sir, Yohmei and Yoh have been trying to subdue Ranma for the last ten minutes. They've had no success so far." Ren looked over and watched as Ranma weaved around another of Yoh's sword swings before kicking him in the back launching him forward into the wall. Ren ran back into the yard where he approached Yohmei.

"What's happening here Yohmei? Why is Ranma fighting Yoh?" He watched for a few more seconds. "And why aren't you helping him?"

"Ranma knocked the wind out of Yoh with a kick right after he knocked you through the gate. I battled Ranma for a bit with my Shikigami but Ranma just seemed to play with them. I tried to knock him out with my shikigami but I just ended up spent. Just Yoh rejoined the fight shortly after and has been taking hit after hit since then."

Ren turned back to the battle after hearing this and watched as Yoh was knocked into the wall again rendering him unconscious. When he looked at Ranma he saw that Ranma had his eyes closed and his face looked happy, exactly like a young child having fun at a park.

Ren took out his Pike and decided to take the initiative with a charge. As he got close to Ranma he took to the air and began descending on Ranma with the handle of his pike.

Ren watched as Ranma suddenly disappeared in front of his eyes and was up in his face just as fast. Before he could recover Ranma had of completed the tackle and sent Ren flying backwards five meters. Ren flipped and landed on his feet. Without a moments hesitation he charged again. As he got close to the bolstering man cat he quickly dived to the ground narrowly avoiding a swipe of Ranmas hand/paw. Ren got up again and immediately noticed the new feeling of his weapon. Upon closer inspection his eyes bugged out. The blade on the pike was missing. He quickly glanced around looking for the missing blade and saw it falling from the sky towards Ranma, who was now standing between Yohmei and Ren. The blade flew just over Ranma's shoulder neatly cutting his shirt from the back of the collar over his left shoulder where the cut continued down his back. When the shirt fell off of Ranma, both Ren and Yohmei gasped.

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Back in the recesses of Ranmas mind a cry was heard.

"WHAT!" Ranma yelled at the giant cat.

"Don't worry it's nothing major. You're just going to end up growing some stripes on your back and face. Your body has already adapted to moving like a true Neko-ken warrior. It'll just come a little more naturally."

Ranma's jaw hit the ground and the cat continued.

"You still have plenty to learn, but I don't want it all coming at once so I'll teach you over time in dreams." The cat's smile grew. "Now that I've told you this I'll send you back to sleep."

All of a sudden Ranma started to feel tired and let out a yawn. He tried stay awake. There were questions he wanted to ask the feline, but he couldn't keep his eyes open.

As he drifted off he heard the cat say one more thing. "Oh yeah, I forgot to mention the tail."

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Ren knew that Ranma just came close to dying but he didn't expect the martial artist to realize that. What did puzzle him now was the stripes that were beginning to sprout out of Ranma's back. He watched as they slowly spread around his sides and to his front until both sides of the stripes were three inches apart from tip to tip.

At that point Ranma got up from the cat like position and took on a normal martial arts stance. This puzzled Ren since up till that point Ranma was acting like an animal. The only thing that didn't change in Ranma were his eyes.

The next thing he knew, Ranma charged.

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Yohmei was just as shocked as Ren had been to see the stripes growing out of Ranma's back. 'Could this be some sort of soul combining?' To him his thoughts were confirmed when Ranma stood up and took on a normal martial arts stance. 'Well this is just great. Ren doesn't stand a chance against Ranma now, not that he had a chance before.'

As Ranma began charging at Ren he noticed one more addition that was beginning to sprout from the lower section of Ranma's back. A grey tail.

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Ren watched as Ranma came closer and decided to try taking things to the air again. When he jumped up though he was surprised to see Ranma give an extra burst of speed that placed him directly below Ren before he took to the air in a flurry of punches and kicks that only took them both higher into the air. Ranma ended his assault with an angled axe kick that sent Ren flying into the koi pond. When he came out he was absolutely pissed. Not only had Ranma made a fool of him the other day but he was doing it again in a way that was even worse. The worst part of it was that this wasn't even Ranma really. He knew he was fighting a shell that was being controlled.

"Is that all you've got?" Ranma asked in a voice that could only be described as empty.

'Ah yes, Anna did say something about a possession. Maybe this spirit is drawing on Ranma's memory and using the kata's that he practices. That must also mean that it's relying on me being as predictable as I've been in order to land all of its blows. Now let's try something different.' At that point Ren jumped out of the water landing just on its edge. "Nope, I've only just begun."

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After watching up to this point in the bout, Yohmei finally managed to close his gaping jaw and move towards Yohs unconscious body. He quickly checked for a pulse. When he confirmed that it was there, he proceeded to shake Yoh in order to awaken him.

Yohmei turned from Yoh to take in the changes to Ranma's body again when he noticed something he hadn't of before.

'Well that's interesting. Ranma's body is pumping out furyoku like I've never seen before.' He continued looking over Ranma for a few more seconds before coming to a new realization.

'That isn't just furyoku. The furyoku is mixed with something else that's amplifying its power.'

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Ren did a quick leap to the side which Ranma mimicked and while they were both in the air he did a side swing with his broken pike which Ranma easily blocked and used the new source of momentum to put a short distance between him and Ren. When both fighters landed they leapt straight for each other. Ren was ready for this though.

"Bason, integrate with your spear."

"Yes, sir." The spirit replied.

Both attacks met in the middle they struggled for a few seconds before Ren managed to overpower Ranma throwing him up in the air.

"He wasn't expecting that Ren." Yohmei shouted over to him. "Use the chance to knock Ranma into the pond. That may shock him out of the possession."

Ren nodded before using his oversoul rocket to follow Ranma into the air. Ren just went higher then Ranma and they both reached their peaks at the same time. Ren took aim and swung his weapon which was again blocked but caused the momentum he was hoping for. While Ren and Ranma were descending from the air, Ren and Yohmei watched as Ranma fell into the koi pond. They continued watching the surface for a few seconds until the ripples stopped. At this time they moved towards the edge of the pool becoming very worried. Ren walked up to the edge of the water and looked down into it

"I wonder if Ranma is alright." No sooner then when the words left his mouth, the surface violently exploded upwards knocking him onto his back.

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As Ranma drifted off in his mind scape he heard the cat say one more thing. "Oh yeah, I forgot to mention the tail."

Ranma's eyes finished closing at that moment. Ranma was confused. For some reason he was wet, he couldn't breath and he now had the familiar female weight on his chest. The thing that got to her the most was that the water was way too cold. She quickly placed her feet against a rock in the bottom of the koi pond and pushed off launching herself out of the water and onto dry land. Upon landing he threw off a quick shake getting the water out of his hair and gave off a shout that filled Ren with more fear.

"That was cold, Damn it." The shirtless Ranma was looking around with fury plainly written across her face." How the hell did I get in there? I'm gonna make sure that he or she, whoever they are will see stars for the next week!" While this was being shouted everyone who was currently conscious and watching but Ranma (Yohmei and Ren) was able to see Ranma's new tail much better. It was standing on end after all.

Yohmei watched with amusement as Ren blanched a whole new shade of white before his nose exploded into a huge gout of blood and promptly fainted.

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Twenty minutes later, all of the people who were present at the estate for the battle were conscious and sitting around the table. Yoh being in the worst condition was sporting several bandages and was even wearing a sling on his left arm. Ren was had about half the amount of bandages that Yoh did but was still now sporting several fist shaped bruises on his face, which were given to him by an enraged Ranma after he fainted. It was only noted afterwards but there were two boxes of Kleenex literally shoved up his nose. The now male Ranma was a short distance from the table curled up in a ball and sleeping. (This slightly disturbed everyone.)

"So what exactly happened here?" Anna was the first to ask as she eyed Ranmas new ears, which were twitching in his sleep.

"Ren and I got the tar beaten out of us." Yoh replied chuckling a bit.

"You I mean!" Anna quickly retorted.

"I believe Ranma has undergone a spirit merge." Yohmei answered. "If you look carefully you'll notice that the spirits residue that was around Ranmas neck when he got here is now gone. However Ranma had no control over his body while the obvious changes were being made." Yohmei took on a more thoughtful look. "There's no way that I could think of that we could learn more now until we ask Ranma himself for more details on the Neko-ken. I guess we will continue this later when Ranma is awake."

After this statement Yohmei stood up from the table and began walking towards the doorway to the kitchen. He was stopped however by a new voice.

"That won't be necessary."

Yohmei stopped and looked around expecting to find another person. He kept looking until he noticed that Yoh was looking back towards Ranma. When he looked at Ranma he stumbled backwards at what he saw. It was a grey colored tiger with black stripes that sat up to half of his height. He managed to catch himself with the kitchens doorframe and pull himself upwards.

While he was taking a few seconds to recompose himself, Yoh beat him to the question he was afraid to know the answer to.

"Who are you?"

The grey tiger looked around at the varied emotions sported by the few faces staring at him. When he stopped looking around he locked his gaze on Yoh.

"I am the Neko-ken."

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End Chapter 4

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A/N: ….. I don't have anything to say really this time. Just the usual I hope you enjoyed the story and etc. I'm thinking I should figure out more to put in here. I guess I'll take opinions from reviewers. I believe you guys should be able to come up with some interesting ideas for me, so please e-mail me your ideas and put in the subject: "Author's notes ideas for The Long and Winding Road."

Now excuse me, but I have to go chase down my notes so I know what I'm going to write for the next chapter. (Pulls out a sledge hammer as a piece of paper floats by, which I give chase to.)


	6. Singing to the cats tune

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The Long and Winding Road.

Book 1: The Truth Behind the Neko-Ken

Chapter 5: Singing to the Cats tune.

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Disclaimer: All the characters used so far in this story do not belong to me. They are the property of their respective owners and I am only borrowing them for a short while (okay, so the short while is a lie since I don't know how long it'll take me to finish my planned storyline). In the future more characters will be introduced some who will be my own creation while others will belong to their respective creators.

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Alright, before I start this fanfic I'd like to answer a couple questions from your reviews.

From: Rubberneck

Nice take on the neko-ken. What made him berserk though? If the neko-ken wants to talk, and Ranma isn't dangerous, then what made him want to kill everyone?

A: Ranma didn't go berserk. What happened there is more related to the second question. Ranma didn't want to kill anyone. He was just after Ren to inflict some pain. I'm going to take an excerpt from the chapter 4 to show this point.

Ren turned back to the battle after hearing this and watched as Yoh was knocked into the wall again rendering him unconscious. When he looked at Ranma he saw that Ranma had his eyes closed and his face looked happy, exactly like a young child having fun at a park.

When Ranma was fighting with Yoh and Yohmei he was just enjoying himself, making it into a game by playing with Yohmei's shikigami and then Yoh himself. Ren however he was out to inflict pain on. Why Ranma was so violent towards Yoh will be answered in this chapter.

As for Why Ranma went "Berserk," he was under the influence of the neko-ken but that doesn't mean that the cat spirit was controlling him. The neko-ken only awakens a sleeping part of the mind that caused it to react as a cat would to his feelings. As I've heard said in many places, "If Neko-Ranma likes you then he can be the sweetest thing in the world, but if he hates you then you better watch your back."

Now since that question is answered, on with the story.

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The people in the Asakura estate were beginning their discussion as to what had happened that evening.

"I guess we will continue this later when Ranma is awake." As this was being said by Yohmei a fine mist began pouring out of Ranmas mouth as he continued to sleep. Since everyone was talking amongst themselves and Yohmei was beginning to exit the room, they didn't notice that the mist quickly took to the form of a large grey tiger with black stripes.

It only took about a time span of three seconds for the whole forming of the feline to finish and when it was, it spoke.

"That won't be necessary." After saying this the tiger watched with amusement plain on its face as Yohmei and everyone was looking around trying to figure out who'd of spoken. After a few seconds it felt the first set of eyes settle on it. When it looked at the person, the cat saw that it was a teenage boy who was no older then his new apprentice. It was also the one that was beaten into unconsciousness by the apprentice. When the cat met eyes with the black haired boy it had to blink from the sheer potential it was able to see in the boy's soul. 'I can't believe it. I was too busy working on my apprentice's body to notice before but here is another soul that has the potential of being a destined one.'

Before the spirit could further analyze the soul in front of him he was interrupted by the sounds of sounds of the old man stumbling backwards. The cat looked over at the old man seeing the shock in his eyes as he stared at him. The old man straightened himself from the ground and began walking back towards the table as its thoughts were interrupted again.

"Who are you?" The black haired boy asked him.

The grey tiger looked around at the varied emotions sported by the few faces staring at him. When he stopped looking around he locked his gaze on Yoh.

"I am the Neko-ken. Before you start asking though, I just want to say that the mentality of my trainees is what you witnessed whenever I choose to do some work on a soul." He watched with amusement as some worried looks were exchanged. "I know that you recognize me as a spirit, but I also detect confusion as to what type of spirit I am." He watched as everyone stared wide-eyed at him except for the black haired boy, who just nodded and gestured for him to continue.

"I am what you shamans would refer to as a high spirit. I have existed for over a millennia and am a direct creation of the Great Spirit itself."

The cat observed as everyone at the table suddenly turned as serious as the black haired boy and turned rapt attention to him. He chuckled to himself.

(A/N: for those of you who haven't figured it out the black haired boy is Yoh.)

"I'd like to ask you all. Have you ever heard the prophecy of the four avatars and Apocalypse?" As the feline asked this he looked around at the gathered people.

"Apocalypse is the name of a very powerful demon. The only being that was ever able to stand up to it was the Great Spirit itself. They fought against each other for well over a whole year before the Great Spirit managed to put it into a deep sleep." The cat looked at everyone's faces to see various degrees of interest from absolute attentive looks from the black haired boy and the old man, to bored looks from the short haired one who knocked Ranma into the pond and the tall man in white clothes.

"Now that was four thousand two hundred and twenty seven years ago. The Great Spirit knew that Apocalypse would awaken eventually so I was created to watch over human kind and prepare the destined avatars that would be born only years before his awakening." The cat spirit closed its eyes for a few seconds while gathering what it wanted to say next.

"I'm sorry to say this, but not even the destined Shaman King would be able to stand up to Apocalypse. He's just too powerful. However, the Great Spirit gave up the vast majority of his original powers to make it so that the four avatars, whose power will be greater than his own, would be born to take up the fight against Apocalypse when he awoke."

"Excuse me Mr….." Yoh began to say.

"Higure Tora." The cat answered.

"Yes, Higure Tora." Yoh continued. "You've mentioned these four avatars a few times now. I was wondering if each avatar would represent different things, or if they all represent the Great Spirits strength in some way."

Higure smiled to himself the best a tiger could. "You're right kid. In a way they all represent the both the Great Spirit, and different things at the same time. However, they don't represent the power directly but instead; each one represents one of four states of spirit and character. The first avatar, who is currently sleeping right behind me, is chaos. If you think about what he's told you of his life wouldn't you of originally called it hectic? Or even Sad? If you ask me, he has more of a chaotic quality to his life. Never knowing what is going to happen next and brings out unexpected things from the people around him. He has sometimes even brought around chaos himself though never with evil intent." Higure looked back over his shoulder at the still sleeping Ranma. "I'd have to say that his stay here has been the least chaotic time of his life, at least since his father used the wrong manual for my art."

"The wrong manual?" Was the response from the gathered group.

"Yes, originally there wasn't a manual for the art but some fool who didn't know what they were doing wrote one as a joke. So I had one of my best trained pupils at the time write a true manual for the Neko-ken. I just think it's too bad that it got burned in a fire that killed all of my pupils at the time." Higure turned back to the table.

"Anyways, back to your question about the avatars. The four avatars are split into two groups. The first group is to have a balance of Life and Death, which each of the avatars represent, and the second group has chaos and….." Higure closes his eyes apparently trying really hard to remember something. After a few seconds he finally spoke again. "Damn it, I can't remember what the other avatar is." The sounds of multiple face faults can be heard.

"Anyways, I'd prefer it if Ranma wasn't to learn of the prophecy for now. The thing is that it is destined that his wife and mate will be his partner avatar. From being with him, I learned that Ranma doesn't like having things decided for him." Yoh and Yohmei nodded in agreement. "I don't think he'd take it all very well and would drive to push against his destiny if he knew now. Besides I already told him in a little meeting of minds that he was just the person chosen to become the next true student of my art." Higure turned and looked at the calm expression on Ranma's face. "I just hope he doesn't take the events to come too hard. They may even tear apart his very being."

After this was said the room fell silent and everyone silently watched as the cat walked over to the curled up Ranma and laid down next to him. Everyone watched as the great cat spirit fell asleep laying against Ranma's back.

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Sounds. He was able to hear sounds hitting him from what seemed to be a short distance away, and through a door. The voices were laughing merrily. They were obviously enjoying themselves. They laughed as the sounds of feet were running throughout the room they were in. He closed his ears against the top of his head to block out the noise for a few precious seconds.

He then realized the slight pressure on his back. It felt warm, comfortable, and well, right. It felt like it was something that was missing from his life. He reveled in the warmth for a few seconds before he realized that it was extremely hairy.

He then proceeded to sniff the air a bit, trying to discern what the object was. He sniffed again when he realized that it had a smell that he didn't recognize. He opened his eyes for what seemed like his first time. He looked up at the sky seeing the moon and a few stars. He quickly turned his eyes from the sight when he realized just how much brighter they seemed then usual.

When this was done he finally chose to get out of his fetal position and get up into a sitting position. He stared out across the yard for a bit admiring the fact that it really didn't seem all that dark to him. After looking around for a bit his eyes caught a flicker of movement in the corner of his eyes and turned to see that it was a tail. Instinctively Ranma's left hand reached out behind him and started rubbing what was now apparently an animal to him. He kept rubbing its stomach eliciting some noises from the animal that Ranma had never of heard before. He smiled a bit when he felt that the noise the animal was making was causing its body to vibrate a little bit.

About that time Ranma felt the vibration of friction and heard the noise caused from the shogi door opening in the quiet of the evening. Ranma closed his eyes and smelled the air again. It was as clean as it was a few moments before. There was the sound of a few foot steps, followed by the sound of the door sliding shut again. Ranma decided to continue enjoying the silence for the moment instead of letting the person know that he knew about them.

"May I sit?"

Ranma turned his head up seeing that it was Yoh who was standing behind him. Ranma also took notice of all of the bandages and the sling Yoh was wearing on his left arm.

"I don't mind. It's your place after all." Ranma replied with a smile on his face.

"You just looked so at peace there, so I thought I'd see if you wanted to be left alone before I sat down."

"Don't worry. You look pretty bad there anyways."

Yoh chuckled at that, and watched as Ranma's new ears rose up on his head.

"What happened to you anyways?" Ranma asked while staring sidelong at Yoh's sling.

"You gave me a very good demonstration of the Neko-ken."

Ranma's eyes grew to the size of dinner plates.

"Oh my god Yoh, I'm sorry about that. I can't control myself while I'm in the Neko-ken. Hell, I never even know what I do in it unless someone tells me." Ranma's face took on a serious look. "I will find a way someday though to control it, that I swear on my hon…" Ranma didn't get to finish his sentence since Yoh was now rolling on his back laughing like he heard the world's best joke. Ranma's ears flattened against the top of his head as he heard the fetal Yoh pound on the ground in his laughter. Ranma just stared in a way that said he was a tad more then slightly annoyed.

Ranma finally turned his head away from the laughing Yoh when he heard the shogi door slide open again. It was Anna now who stepped through the shogi door and shut it again. She walked to the other side of Ranma from where Yoh was still laughing and sat down.

"What's up with him?" She asked Ranma. She was wearing a disapproving look as she watched Yoh begin to calm down, though loud giggles were still escaping him.

"I found out how he got those injuries. When I apologized and swore that I'd find a way to control the Neko-ken one day he began laughing."

Anna looked from Yoh to Ranma and after a few seconds let out a small giggle, which she quickly silenced. "I believe I see what he found funny." She gave Ranma a small smile after saying this.

"Well?" Ranma returned only a little of his annoyance remaining.

"You're already on your road to recovery Ranma."

At this time Yoh was finished laughing and was lying on his back catching his breath. He raised his good arm into the air pointing his index fingers upwards.

"That (pant) you are. (pant)" Yoh spoke between deep breaths.

Ranma's look of annoyance returned. "If I may ask, how is beating the tar out of one of my only friends being on the road to recovery?"

Ranma turned back to Anna from Yoh and noticed that she was looking right behind Ranma. Ranma realized at that time that he was still petting the animal that was behind him. It took a few more seconds and a prompting from Anna to look for Ranma to realize what it was that was behind him.

Ranma developed a slight fear that he'd go into Neko-ken again if he turned to look. So Ranma did the one thing he could think to do. He locked up his body and stared straight ahead in the opposite direction of the beast. Anna giggled again lightly understanding his plight.

"It's okay Ranma. I can guarantee that you won't go into the Neko-ken and hurt us if you look. In fact…" Anna quickly took Ranma's hand and put it on the cat again. This made Ranma go even tenser, made his ears go up stiff and caused him to screw his eyes shut. After a good minute, which during that time Anna had to inquire Yoh's help to keep Ranma's hand on the cat, Ranma finally began to loosen up a bit and started to rub the cat again much to Anna and Yoh's relief.

"Ok, so obviously touching a cat doesn't send me into the Neko-ken anymore. I wonder why though."

Ranma turned his light rubs on the still sleeping cat into a belly scratch. This awoke said sleeping cat and it opened one eye to look at the hand that was giving the pleasant belly scratch. Higure followed the limb that the hand was attached to and finally took notice of who it belonged to. He heard Ranma make his comment about not being sent into the Neko-ken and decided to turn it into an opportunity to surprise the young man.

"You know Ranma, that feels great and all, but could you please scratch a little more to the left?" Higure watched in satisfaction as Ranma's relaxed cat ears suddenly stood tall and Ranma whipped around to stare directly at him.

As Ranma heard the new voice, only one thought was running through his head. 'That voice! There's no way." Ranma jerked his head to stare at the familiar looking feline, which was trying to hold in a roar of laughter. "How'd you get out of my head?" Ranma took notice of the Hirure's size. "After you answer that could you tell me why you aren't as huge as you were when I saw you in here?" Ranma said that while tapping the side of his head.

"I think I'll answer that question for you Ranma." Anna spoke up. This drew Ranma's attention from Higure to her. "As you know from your discussion with Himure in your noggin, which if I may add took place while you were decimating Yoh here."

"Hey!" Yoh shouted causing Ranma's ears to fold down on his head again, and eliciting a short chuckle from Anna.

"You have gone through a spirit merge with him. As you might have noticed," She quickly gave one of Ranma's ears a light flick, "your body has undergone a few little changes, namely the relocation and reshaping of your ears, a few stripes, and a tail." She counted these changes off on her fingers.

"I'd have to say that it's an interesting look you've got there" commented Yoh resulting in a Charlie horse on his injured shoulder, which earned itself two flinches of sympathy from Ranma and Higure.

"The second thing it resulted in is the answer to your second question." Anna continued ignoring the pained Yoh. "I'm sure that during your stay you've seen Yoh and Ren spar in the backyard." Ranma nodded. "Then you're familiar with oversouls?" Ranma nodded again. "Good. Now you've probably seen how the shoulder guard that materializes around Yoh's right shoulder is actually able to block Ren's pike right?" Yet another nod came from Ranma. "Higure's body is the result of something very similar. He's taping a very small amount of your shared mana reserves to produce a body for himself from it. It is as solid as a living tiger of his size would be. This however doesn't put a drain on your mana because his body isn't constantly being disrupted and changed. It only drains your mana whenever you've got to restore his body. The thing that escapes me though is how he's managed to produce himself without using a focus medium like Amidamaru's sword the Harusame." She turned her attention to Higure. "Care to answer that hairball?"

Gulp "Hehe, no thank you." Higure started trying to hide from her gaze behind Ranma's back, and failing miserably. This only annoyed Anna more.

Ranma let out a short laugh which caught the other three off guard. Yohmei watched his friend laugh before it finally kicked in and he let loose a laugh of his own.

Anna was a bit confused for a few more seconds before she remembered the mission she'd of set out for herself.

"Well if you two hyenas need Higure or myself," Anna said this as she grabbed Higure around the neck and started dragging the struggling feline across the yard. "We will be over here having a little chat." That line turned up the levels on Ranma and Yoh's laugh meters from gentle to rip-roaring and burst your side laughing.

Higure was struggling against Anna's hold the best he could, but he couldn't get a good grip since he wasn't able to touch the ground with his front claws. After another few minutes of struggling he finally gave up to the inevitable drag.

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Just inside the Shogi door Yohmei decided that things were going well enough outside. With a final look over his shoulder at the door he stood up and began walking for his bedroom to turn in for the night. As Yohmei was walking away his face turned serious.

"I think I will start the preparations tomorrow." He said only to himself.

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The next morning all was as was now taken as usual at the Asakura estate. Ranma and Yoh were sitting next to each other (Ranma being finished his breakfast of course) and talking about the latest martial arts tournament they saw on television. They were also comparing the styles used, and Ranma was talking about how he could take anything he watched and incorporate it into his style. Anna and Yoh's mother were sitting next to each other eating quietly. The sewing set next to her was the only unusual thing standing out there. And last but not least, Yohmei sat at the head of the table wrapping up his meal. Once he was finished he stood and walked towards the door. When he got there he stopped and turned to look towards the table while putting on his outdoor footwear.

"I'm going out for a while everyone. I have some business downtown to take care of. Don't worry about making lunch for me. I will probably be gone for most of the day." After saying this Yohmei turned again and left through the front door.

Shortly after Yohmei left Anna and Yoh's mother got up and began walking towards the door as Yohmei had done. As they were walking out the door, Anna turned and addressed the remaining two at the table.

"If you two can I'd like you to take care of the dishes from breakfast while we're out. When we get back I'll be fixing your ripped shirt Ranma."

"Arigato."

"Well anyways, I'd also like to get my hand on those five other shirts…"

"Six." Ranma interrupted.

"Ok, six other identical shirts you have so I can make some modifications to them."

"If I may ask, why do my clothes need to be modified?" Ranma asked.

Anna breathed a deep sigh. "I think that hoods on your shirt will be a necessity now Ranma." When she saw Ranma's slightly confused face she continued. "Think about it. How would the public react to seeing a teenage boy walk around the shopping district when he has cat ears and a tail flopping around?" She waited a few seconds for realization to dawn on Ranma. "In that case I'll need to see all of your pants too eventually so I can add some tail holes like you have in the ones you're wearing now."

Ranma took a quick look over his shoulder at his tail that was lying on the ground behind him. "Maybe that would be a good idea."

"Anyways we'll be going now to get some groceries and the required fabrics so we'll see you by noon." With that they disappeared through the front door and were gone.

Yoh quickly finished up his meal then walked his dishes into the kitchen since Ranma was already there with the rest of them.

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End Chapter 5

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AN: Sorry this took too long. Father can be a pain more often then I'd like him to be. To think of the nerve of him though. Here's a direct phrase he used when telling me that he didn't want me to go on my computer for a while.

"It is time for you to quit acting like a 12 year old child. You should start acting like the 20 year old man you are."

**Steam blows out of ears**

He doesn't think that playing video games, reading/writing fanfiction, or spending time doing random things on your computer is behavior typical of an adult.

**More steam blows out**

Anyways, sorry bout the ranting. On top of this, I'm still battling it out with my case of writers block. The next chapter should be up within the next week but please don't hold it against me if it's a little late. I have to catch up to my quota of being a chapter ahead of what I post, so after this chapter is posted I will be starting then on chapter six and that one won't be posted till I'm finished the chapter after.

Before I sign off, I'd just like to thank my reviewers. If I didn't see those reviews I don't know just how enthusiastic I'd be about writing this story.

Until next time.


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